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Sport

13 February, 2023

Samit smashes 128 to guide Laane to victory

Samit Gohil’s dominant season continued, clubbing an unbeaten 128 to help guide Laanecoorie Dunolly to a comfortable 68-run victory over Clunes. Laane won the toss and elected to bat — and knowing the significance of making a big score with just...

By Michael Thompson

Samit Gohil crafted together another century for Laane on Saturday — his third of the season. Photo: 140223 01
Samit Gohil crafted together another century for Laane on Saturday — his third of the season. Photo: 140223 01

Samit Gohil’s dominant season continued, clubbing an unbeaten 128 to help guide Laanecoorie Dunolly to a comfortable 68-run victory over Clunes.

Laane won the toss and elected to bat — and knowing the significance of making a big score with just one day’s play on offer, elected to change their opening batting lineup, with Benjamin Gunn joining Tom Hannett at the crease.

However, the Magpies were the ones to strike first. With the score on 15, Hannett played at a Jaxon Smyth ball, only to go straight to Jude McGuire behind the stumps.

That brought out Gohil to the crease, and immediately set out to work with Gunn, who was bringing up the run-rate with a quality display of shot-making, which ended with the score on 47 when Gunn tried to play one too many aggressive shots, finding Aidan Thompson near the boundary off the bowling of Noah Davies.

Gohil and fellow recruit Damith Perera then put in a 92-run partnership to give Laane complete control, with Perera playing his best innings of the season so far. He made 32 before he was caught by Ashley Gunn off Brendan Ingram’s bowling.

Gohil continued to control the majority of the innings, with a 49-run partnership following with Matt Smith, who made 20 before Riley Coppick found the edge to McGuire.

It brought about Clunes’ best passage of the afternoon, taking 3/2, with Daniel Romeo and James Shorney immediately following to leave Laane 6/190.

To finish the innings, Gohil made his 100 just before the final over, before hitting 28 off the last over to finish on 128 not out.

Riley Coppick was the Magpies’ best bowler, finishing with 2/47 off eight overs, with four other players contributing with wickets.

It was the Magpies’ turn to bat afterwards, desperately needing a positive start to give themselves any hope of taking points off Laane.

Anthony Ellis and McGuire were successful in this endeavour, putting on 34 before McGuire edged a Joe Lovel delivery straight to Perera for seven.

Ellis and Gunn then put on 15 for the second wicket, but the former’s departure for 27 triggered a mini-collapse within Clunes’ top-order, with Thompson and Gunn immediately following — taking Clunes from 1/49 to 4/50.

Daniel Fordham and Ingram fought hard to give Clunes a bit of stability, putting on 39 for the fifth wicket before Ingram was caught by Gohil for 21 off the bowling of Jarred Russell.

Russell had a good spell, following his first wicket up with another when he sent Fordham packing on 19, before Laane’s Gunn made an impact, taking the wickets of Coppick and Davies for zero and one respectively.

It left the Magpies 8/94, but they were keen to put some respectability back on to the scoreboard, which was a successful endeavour, with Smyth and Todd Featherston putting on 26 for the ninth wicket.

However, Gunn would soon take his third wicket for Laane, leaving them with just one wicket to take victory.

But the Magpies at least provided some solid resistance, combined with Laane giving their front-line bowlers a break, which saw Featherston eventually make 49 and Muhammad add 12 before the former was removed on the second-last ball of the afternoon to give Laane a 68-run victory.

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